Embellished cotton undergarment – UAE

Object Note   
This article is part of a whole outfit including a combination overgarment tunic (thawb_kandurah Thawb_kandūrah: (colloquial, UAE), post-1990s the (Thawb_wa_kandūrah) ensemble of the eighties evolved where the overgarment (thawb) and tunic (kandūrah) became united at the neckline creating one outfit and inner tunic receding to act as lining.)  (ZI2021.500903 UAE), cloak (abayah  ‘Abāyah: (Arabic: cloak, Pl. ‘abāyāt, or ‘Ibī. In Classical Arabic: ‘abā’ah, pl: ‘abā’āt, synonyms: ‘Abā, ‘abāh, ‘abāt, dafah Daffah : (Arabic: side, synonyms: ‘Abā, ‘abāyah, ‘abāh, ‘abāt, bisht or mishlaḥ), long, wide, and sleeveless outer cloak worn in public by both sexes. In time this article of dress evolved and changed in shape, style, and function., bisht, or mishlaḥ), long, wide, and sleeveless outer cloak worn in public by both sexes. In time this article of dress evolved and changed in shape, style, and function.) (ZI2021.500903a UAE), veil (shaylah Shaylah: (Colloquial Gulf Arabic), a length of fabric used as shawl Shawl: (Persian: shāl from Hindi: duśālā – Shoulder Mantle), a shawl is a South Asian version of a scarf Scarf: (English), usually a rectangular piece of cloth loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. worn or wrapped loosely over the shoulders and is usually made of wool. , head cover or veil. Also known as (wigāyah) or (milfa Milfa’: (Arabic: to cover), shawl Shawl: (Persian: shāl from Hindi: duśālā – Shoulder Mantle), a shawl is a South Asian version of a scarf Scarf: (English), usually a rectangular piece of cloth loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. worn or wrapped loosely over the shoulders and is usually made of wool.  or veil worn by women in the Arab Gulf regions and some areas of the Levant to cover the head.’), generally made from sheer fabrics such as tulle (tūr), cotton gauze (wasmah Wasmah: (Arabic: woad), is derived from the woad herb (wasmah) used to dye the cotton gauze black. It is mainly used for headcovers or veils and overgarments in most of the Arab gulf region.) (nidwah) or (Nīl), or silk chiffon (sarī).)  (ZI2021.500903b UAE), face mask (burgu Burgu’: (Arabic: burqa’: mask, pl. barāqi’), a generic name given to one of many forms of face veils or masks, known as (niqāb). Stiffer versions made of indigo-dyed cotton, are known as (bat Bāṭ: (Arabic: underarm/armpit, pl. bītān, synonym: ibt, tkhrāṣah, tnfāyah/tnfājah), gusset, a triangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric inserted into the seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Used for underarms on tunic dresses, side sleeve panels on overgarments (thāwb), and undergarments (ṣarāwl). ūlah) in Oman and Qatar. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects.) (ZI2021.500903c UAE) 
 
Object History 
On the day the UAE mission to Mars was launched on 9th of February 2021, Dr. Reem Tariq el Mutwalli Dr. Reem Tariq el Mutwallī: Founder (CEO) of the Zay Zay: (Arabic: costume, Pl. azyaā’), a set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period. Initiative, a public figure, speaker and author. An expert curator and consultant in Islamic art and architecture, interior design, historic costume, and UAE heritage. was surfing social media, an image of a woman carrying cardboard with a simple hand written message that read “we reached Mars” captured her attention.
She reached out to the account that posted the image. A young UAE photographer Alia Bent Sultan al Joker had been visiting her best friend’s farm on this festive day. As the whole country was glued to the media stations in excitement and anticipation of the coverage. The whole nation was firing the SM competing to post masses of congratulatory posts. In this herd-excitement, her friend’s mother agreed to pose for the photograph to eco her personal proud sentiments of the occasion, and the photograph was birthed.
Both ladies welcomed Dr. Reem’s suggestion to donate the image as well as the whole outfit portrayed in the image to the Zay Zay: (Arabic: costume, Pl. azyaā’), a set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period. Collection in commemoration of this monumental date. The image went viral and soon Khasibah became a public figure interviewed by press and media including Vogue Arabia, all wanting to photograph her to relive the moment.
Alia Bint Sultan Al Joker (@alia_bent_sultan), born in Dubai, graduated with a BA in Integrated communication and marketing, Zayed University UAE (2003). Obtained her masters in Quality Management, Wollongong University, UAE (2009), and currently holds the position of Director of Family Development at the ministry of community development. Photography is her passion.
Khasibah Ali al Dhmani is registered to have been born on the 1st of July 1953. (Most birth dates occurring before the formation of the UAE in 1971, are surmised, as birth dates were not recorded. Hence everyone is generally listed as being born on the 1st of July, and the year it is calculated based on anecdotes of special events that corresponded to the year of birth, for example, the year when someone took power, or the year that faced an extreme heatwave, etc.)
She was married at the age of 14 and gave birth to 6 sons and 10 daughters. She never attended any formal schooling but managed to create a cottage industry making and selling traditional perfume and incense. She is very active and participates in different cultural weeks depicting local UAE heritage, and now has her own Instagram handle (@khaseibah_).
 
Object Features   
This stripped (bu_glaym Bū_glaym: (Arabic: bū: diminutive of abū: father, qlaym: diminutive of qalam: pencil), generally refers to pencil striped fabrics. The (qāf) is pronounced (ga) in many Arab dialects.) indian cotton is very popular among women in the UAE, used to make undergarments like this (sarwal Ṣarwāl: (Farsi: shalvār; Synonym: Salwar Salwar: (Farsi: shalvār; Synonym: Ṣarwāl, shalwar, sharwāl, salbāl, sirwāl, khalag), pair of trousers with tapering ankles and fastened with a draw string. Believed to have originated in Central Asia it has spread since in the Indian subcontinent between c. 1st – 3rd century BCE and the Middle East from c. 12th century.  , shalwar Shalwar: (Farsi: shalvār; Synonym: Salwar, Ṣarwāl, sharwāl, salbāl, sirwāl, khalag), pair of trousers with tapering ankles and fastened with a draw string. Believed to have originated in Central Asia it has spread since in the Indian subcontinent between c. 1st – 3rd century BCE and the Middle East from c. 12th century. , sharwāl, salbāl, sirwāl, khalag), pair of trousers with tapering ankles and fastened with a draw string. Believed to have originated in Central Asia it has spread since in the Indian subcontinent between c. 1st – 3rd century BCE and the Middle East from c. 12th century. ) and tunic dresses (kanadir). This example in bright red with blue pencil lines sandwiched by orange stripes, a more contemporary colour found abundantly in the local market. 
The garment’s decorative ankle cuff (badlah Bādlah: (Hindi: badla, pl. bawādil), metallic thread adornment. Colloquially in the UAE, it refers to the embellished pant cuffs, also be pronounced (bedlah) from the verb to change, due to its value it was recycled from one garment to the other.) is a contemporary simple version of the traditional hand embroidered silver (talli_badlah) with thirty-three lines of metallic silver braiding (talli_fatlah) in white cotton thread ( hdub Hdūb: (Arabic: hadb: eyelash), in colloquial UAE, the term refers to any fringe on a garment.) intertwined with silver metallic straw (khus Khūṣ: (Arabic: straw, sing. khūṣah), flat silver or metallic flat straw used in embroidery or tallī making.), applied in ringlets or bracelet form to delineate the ankle cuffs (hyul Ḥyūl: (Arabic: hjūl: to walk or jump), colloquially in the Gulf region, the term refers to the hem of garment or its sleeves. In pronunciation, the (j) turns to (y). ). Negating the traditional badlah Bādlah: (Hindi: badla, pl. bawādil), metallic thread adornment. Colloquially in the UAE, it refers to the embellished pant cuffs, also be pronounced (bedlah) from the verb to change, due to its value it was recycled from one garment to the other. design which would have had a centre portion (bayt Bayt: (Arabic: house). Colloquially in the UAE it refers to the larger, middle part of the decorative ankle-cuff (bādlah) and can include between one to twenty different braids (talli Tallī: (Arabic: talā, or talā’: paint or to coat, Turkish: tel: wire, synonyms: asīūṭī, tur_bi_tallī/tulle_bi_talli Tulle_bi_tallī: (English: tulle: netting, Arabic: talā, or talā’: paint or to coat, Turkish: tel: wire, synonyms: asūṭī, tallī, tur_bi_talli, mnaqad/mnaghad, mukaish Mukaish (Indian, synonyms: asūṭī, tallī, tur_bi_tallī/tulle_bi_talli, mnaqad/mnaghad, mukaish, badla/badlah, fardi, khus_dozi Khūs_dozi: (Persian: Khus – Gold; Dozi – sewing or embroidery), any embroidery that is done with gold wire or thread. ). Indian embroidery technique where small rectangular strips of metal are squeezed shut around some threads of the fabric creating intricate shapes and designs., badla/badlah, fardi, khus_dozi Khūs_dozi: (Persian: Khus – Gold; Dozi – sewing or embroidery), any embroidery that is done with gold wire or thread. ). Cotton linen or synthetic mesh hand embellished with flat strips of metal alloys coated with silver or gold squeezed shut around some threads of fabric creating intricate shapes and designs., mnaqad/mnaghad, mukaish Mukaish (Indian, synonyms: asūṭī, tallī, tur_bi_tallī/tulle_bi_talli, mnaqad/mnaghad, mukaish, badla/badlah, fardi, khus_dozi Khūs_dozi: (Persian: Khus – Gold; Dozi – sewing or embroidery), any embroidery that is done with gold wire or thread. ). Indian embroidery technique where small rectangular strips of metal are squeezed shut around some threads of the fabric creating intricate shapes and designs., badla/badlah, fardi, khus_dozi Khūs_dozi: (Persian: Khus – Gold; Dozi – sewing or embroidery), any embroidery that is done with gold wire or thread. ), metal alloys coated with silver or gold, to create either flat straws or coil threads applied on clothing in varying patterns._fatlah Fātlah: (Arabic: fatala: to twist/twine, pl. fātlāt/ftūl), in the UAE colloquially, it refers to braids in (tallī) work. The braid or strand resembles a running stitch, where the effect is attained by continuously looping metallic thread with silk, cotton, or synthetic thread.  ), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf).) decorated on the top edge in the (talli_minsharah Tallī_minshārah: (Arabic: minshārah: a saw), Colloquially in the UAE refers to the sharp-edged saw teeth pattern generally applied in embroidery or (tallī) making. It is a filled in running stitch version of the (ghūlī) triangle. It requires 10 spools (dhahārī) of thread, 1 metallic straw (khūṣah), and 12 hours of work to obtain a meter-long cord.) motif, and a (talli_ftul) motif repeated on the side borders (traf Ṭrāf: (Arabic: aṭrāf, sing. ṭaraf: edges). Colloquially in the UAE it refers to the part that forms the rim or border on decorative ankle-cuffs (bādlah).). 
The garment is opened and closed with the aid of a zipper versus earlier versions that used traditional cotton thread ball buttons (igam) or metal snap studs (siq_w_biq Siq_w_biq: (Colloquial Arabic), metallic snap studs used to fasten clothing. The term in an onomatopoeia representing the sound that the snaps make when opening and snapping shut.).